Whether or not they really started in the 80s is a bit of a bone of contention. Bohemian Rhapsody? Sure, the widespread broadcasting of videos started in the 80s but they were certainly around before then.

As for my case for 'The Final Countdown'

Big hair. Hero shots. Stupid gyration. Band playing live. Screaming fans. Helicopter-shot footage. Band with gold records. Stratocasters. Big drum kit. Pyrotechnics. Lycra (Spandex). 'Woohhhmmaan' style vocals. Makeup. Sparkles. Glitter. A feeling of dread. Please make it end. The end is near. Time for the overdose.

I barely remember that video - thanks for posting it. I found this interesting:

Quote:

Columbia Pictures was later the defendant in a copyright infringement lawsuit, also naming Parker which claimed "Ghostbusters" was too similar in musical structure to "I Want a New Drug," written and performed by Huey Lewis and the News (more specifically, the bass/guitar riff which runs through the song). "I Want a New Drug" was a U.S. top-ten hit earlier the same year and was extremely similar to "Pop Muzik" by M, a project by Robin Scott. The two parties settled out of court. Details of the settlement (specifically, that Columbia Pictures paid Lewis a settlement) were confidential until 2001, when Lewis commented on the payment in an episode of VH1's Behind the Music. Parker subsequently sued Lewis for breaching confidentiality.

Big hair. Hero shots. Stupid gyration. Band playing live. Screaming fans. Helicopter-shot footage. Band with gold records. Stratocasters. Big drum kit. Pyrotechnics. Lycra (Spandex). 'Woohhhmmaan' style vocals. Makeup. Sparkles. Glitter. A feeling of dread. Please make it end. The end is near. Time for the overdose.

Granted the song is beyond cheesy, but I've always thought that video was brilliant marketing.

You take an obscure band no one had ever previously heard of, from a country not known for producing rock stars, and you make it look like the band is wildly successful and give the illusion that this band is happening, and if you're not on board with what is going on, you're going to get left behind.

Sure, in retrospect, it's extremely formulaic. But when it first came out, it set the tone for how to break a band no one's ever heard of, and was copied by hundreds of bands later on through the remainder of the 80's.

That, and at least that video falls inline with the lyrics, which was tough to do, given the songs lyrics make no sense. LOL.

I can't view all of the links below but in case it hasn't been mentioned yet, I think that Billy Squier's practically defined the bad video and questionably gay genre with his "Rock Me Tonite" video. The ripping off of the shirt. The prancing. The preening. The silk sheets.

The cheesiest video from the 80's has to be "Love Plus One" by Haircut 100.

The one where there is this little geeky singer, in a Tarzan costume that is too big, swinging from a vine. Maybe if the singer was a big muscular guy it might have made some sense, but it just looks beyond silly. And really, it has nothing to do with the song.

I've always disliked videos that have nothing to do with the song. The point of a video is promote the song, and provide a visual compliment to the artists work. So I've never understood why some bands/artists get talked into doing videos that just have NOTHING to do with the lyrics or music.

Of which probably the worst offender was Phil Collins "Don't Lose My Number" in which Phil parodied numerous other videos. That video must have cost several hundred thousand dollars to make, and does nothing for the song. The video has nothing to do with the song. The song itself might as well not even be a part of the video. And Phil is singing in this very serious tone through out, while the video is complete comedy. It just makes no sense.

But the cheesiest, worst video, of all time, is not from the 80's.
No, the worst, most cheese video ever is Metallica's version of "Turn the Page."
Take a great song, and make a pretty good cover of it. And then make a video that has NOTHING to do with the lyrics, that doesn't in the least bit tie into the intensity of the song, but have it full shots of a stripper working a pole. A formerly great band took a great song, and ruined both all in one 3-4 minute clip. All of metal and rock should be embarrassed for that.

I can't view all of the links below but in case it hasn't been mentioned yet, I think that Billy Squier's practically defined the bad video and questionably gay genre with his "Rock Me Tonite" video. The ripping off of the shirt. The prancing. The preening. The silk sheets.

Oh the horror.

Yes. But I give Billy a pass because he has publicly admitted over and over again that video was a bad idea that killed his carrier (that and letting Def Leppard open for him).

But the cheesiest, worst video, of all time, is not from the 80's.
No, the worst, most cheese video ever is Metallica's version of "Turn the Page."
Take a great song, and make a pretty good cover of it. And then make a video that has NOTHING to do with the lyrics, that doesn't in the least bit tie into the intensity of the song, but have it full shots of a stripper working a pole. A formerly great band took a great song, and ruined both all in one 3-4 minute clip. All of metal and rock should be embarrassed for that.

I don't think I ever saw that video - guess I'll have to check it out now. LOL

I LOLed when I read the thread title. Dancing in the Street for sure. Just checked Final Countdown again - wank factor 11. I think any "cheesiest" list from the 80s has to include We Built This City on Rock an Roll.

I never understood the cross eyed Asian woman. Here's an explanation behind the theme of the video:

Quote:

Devo funded the music video for "Whip It" with $15,000 USD of their own money. The main visual of the video, Mark Mothersbaugh whipping the clothes off a woman, was inspired by an article in a 1962 issue of "Dude" magazine. In an interview for Songfacts, Casale explains "There was a feature article on a guy who had been an actor and fell on hard times, he wasn't getting parts anymore. He moved with his wife to Arizona, opened a dude ranch and charged people money to come hang out at the ranch. Every day at noon in the corral, for entertainment, he'd whip his wife's clothes off with a 12-foot bullwhip. She sewed the costumes and put them together with Velcro. The story was in the magazine about how good he was and how he never hurt her. We had such a big laugh about it, we said, 'OK, that's the basis for the video. We'll have these cowboys drinking beer and cheering Mark on as he's in the barnyard whipping this pioneer woman's clothes off while the band plays in the corral.'"

In the video, Devo wears black, sleeveless turtlenecks, and their famous Energy Dome headgear. When the video begins, all the members, except for Mark Mothersbaugh, wear the turtlenecks pulled over their faces. During the performance, each member lowers the turtleneck. Robert Mothersbaugh ("Bob 1") plays a Gibson Les Paul with an inverted horn, Robert Casale ("Bob 2") plays a red Rheem Kee Bass, and Alan Myers plays a set of Synare 3 drum synthesizers.

Not surprisingly, the S&M overtones of the video caused controversy. Devo was forced to abandon a television appearance after the host deemed the video offensive to women[citation needed]. Despite this, "Whip It" received heavy rotation on MTV after its introduction in 1981.

Haha - the video started very promisingly but the camp arm movements at around 0:30 were like a sudden big bucket of cold water sloshed on me! Why didn't the producer tell him? How they let it be released? What were they thinking??

I'd vote INOG has to be an early winner here - it's the most diabolical dancing on a professional video that I've seen. It makes Mick and Bowie on Dancing in the Street look like Bruce Springsteen :)

But the cheesiest, worst video, of all time, is not from the 80's.
No, the worst, most cheese video ever is Metallica's version of "Turn the Page."
Take a great song, and make a pretty good cover of it. And then make a video that has NOTHING to do with the lyrics, that doesn't in the least bit tie into the intensity of the song, but have it full shots of a stripper working a pole. A formerly great band took a great song, and ruined both all in one 3-4 minute clip. All of metal and rock should be embarrassed for that.

I disagree about this one. I think it chooses the stripper/prostitute lifestyle to illustrate the darker, seedier side of the music business. The original song was about the hard, dark parts about being a traveling musician, so I don't think it's that much of a stretch.

When she says, given the chance to start over, she would make the same choices - I think that speaks for a lot of musicians, despite the hardships and social scorn they might face.